Posted on 10/02/2020 8:39:57 PM PDT by ifinnegan
By almost any account, Stan Musial was considered the greatest Cardinals player. By the same accounts, Bob Gibson, who died at age 84 Friday night in Omaha, Nebraska, under hospice care after fighting pancreatic cancer for more than a year, was considered the franchise’s greatest pitcher.
Gibson was the Cardinals' second National Baseball Hall of Famer to die in the past month. His longtime teammate, Lou Brock, died at age 81 on Sept. 6. Gibson's death came on the 52nd anniversary of perhaps his greatest game, a record 17-strikeout performance in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series.
(Excerpt) Read more at stltoday.com ...
In a hypothetical Game 7 of the World Series, who do you give the ball to?
Gibson
Koufax
or
Bumgarner
Tough choice
yep, in the days before pitch counts and 5 man starting rotations, and “bullpen games”, pitchers racked up bigger stats than they can today.
From a lifelong Tigers fan, RIP Bob, you were the greatest.
That’s what made winning the 68 World Series so special, we beat the best in the game.
Al Kaline and Bob are probably reminiscing right now about it.
McLain pitched 336 innings that year and had 28 complete games. I don’t know how many cortisone shots he got that year, but that’s what kept him going. McLain had another very good year in 1969, but after that his arm was shot.
Complete games by a starting pitcher are a rarity now. Most starters are limited to 100 pitches/game now. Kershaw pitched a great game last night, but was yanked after 8 innings. Had he pitched the 9th he may have a gotten a complete game shutout.
I was in Cardinals country, and I recall that in some afternoon classes, the teacher brought in a big TV and we all watched!
Terrific pitcher, amazing athlete, and a good guy. Rest In Peace, Mr. Gibson!
Now there was a teacher you could learn from.
The last of the complete game / use him as much you need him pitcher I believe was Orel Hershiser for the Dodgers late 80s championship. He started repeatedly on short rest, pitched long, and was even used in relief in the same series against the Mets and A’s.
You were one of the best.
One of my childhood heroes. One of the greatest ever.
God bless him.
My hero. RIP, Gibby.
Can’t go wrong with either Gibson or Koufax. You could also put Randy Johnson into the mix for the start. Not sure about Bumgarner, though.
Me too. I used to fall of the mound like him.
Tough choice, indeed. However, I'm giving the ball to Catfish Hunter. During his prime, i.e. the 72-74 World Series, he was 4-0, with an ERA under 1.75.
With Catfish, it was never about stats, though. He almost always found a way to give up one fewer run than his teammates gave him. That's what made him such a money pitcher.
Not denigrating Gibby or Koufax, either. I saw both of them pitch at Candlestick Park against the Giants.
You had Marichal, and he wasn’t half bad.
On July 2, 1963, Juan Marichal and Warren Spahn put on a pitching display likely to never be repeated.
Willie Mays won the game for the Giants in the bottom of the sixteenth inning with a solo home run. Both starting pitchers threw complete games, and both pitchers made their regularly scheduled starts four days later.
I was in Cardinals country, and I recall that in some afternoon classes, the teacher brought in a big TV and we all watched!
Gibson and Seaver: two of the greatest pitchers in my lifetime. Gibson owned the plate in an era when throwing at the chin was the norm. And he was a great hitter for a pitchr snd sometimes used as a pinch hitter.
Gibby’s World Series career ERA was 1.89.
Koufax pitched must-win pennant clinching games twice— I think ‘’65 and’ ‘66. I believe his career record in 1-0 games was 11-3!
Having grown up in the golden era of the ‘60’s and ‘70’s, I never saw a “money pitcher“ quite as reliable as Koufax.he seemed to get better the more important the stakes.
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